Japanese Wedding, San Francisco, CA, 1987

Alice accepts sake in a lacquer cup for the san san kudo rite, literally "3-3-9," which solemnizes weddings in Japan, even when the couple do not wear kimonos but are married in a white western wedding dress and a tuxedo.

Katrina Thomas's notes: The elaborate and expensive wedding customs of historical Japan are rarely kept, even in the homeland. However I photograph one wedding for which traditions are retained because the bride, who is mixed Chinese and Japanese, wishes to honor the heritage of her husband, he, being the minister of the Konko Kyo church, in which they are married. In addition to their wearing kimonos, and she a wig and traditional headdress, they perform the essential ceremony of san san kudo, each drinking from three cups of sake three times, which is usually eliminated today by those married in America.